VietNamNet Bridge – Both foreign and local travellers involved in a EU-funded survey in Vietnam say all the destinations they arrive at are environmentally friendly, and visitors respect local cultures and environments.

The Environmentally and Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme (ESRT) surveyed 1,543 visitors, including 786 foreigners, who have been to Hue, Danang, Hoi An, Ha Long and Sapa – the five major tourist attractions in Vietnam.

The first-phase results of the survey show international travellers usually spend most on lodging, followed by food and beverages and the least on transportation.

Domestic travellers, on the other hand, usually spend the largest part of their travel budget on food, followed by transportation and lastly lodging.

All of them rated the five localities high in regards to the friendliness of the local people and stated they were most impressed with the natural landscape of the regions.

The second phase of the project will be conducted in July and August.

Through the tourist survey, the ESRT project aims to develop responsible tourism and improve the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT)’s capacity of statistical work, including the collection, analysis, management, and dissemination of information and data, thus helping the agency do intensive research on tourism statistics.

VOV/VNN